


Join the Joyride

by admiralandrea



Category: NCIS: Los Angeles
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Non-Consensual Drug Use
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-09
Updated: 2020-02-09
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:01:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22632322
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/admiralandrea/pseuds/admiralandrea
Summary: Callen's past comes back to haunt him as the team try to unravel a mysterious case of drugged people with the help of the FBI.
Kudos: 14





	Join the Joyride

**Author's Note:**

> The opening to this came to me via a dream way back in 2019 and it took a while to write and finish in suitable condition for posting. Set in Granger's early days in the show when he wasn't yet liked by the team.

They crept down the corridor, guns up and heads on swivels. They were both unnerved by the place. 

“This is like some sort of weird Hotel California,” Callen murmured with a glance to Sam Hanna.

Sam raised his eyebrows. “You can check in but never check out,” Callen said.

“Yeah, I got it,” Sam told him with a bite to his tone.

Callen just looked back at him, knowing his partner was just as creeped out by this place as the rest of them.

“Uh, we got animals here,” Deeks’s voice over the earwig was hushed but clearly unhappy.

“What sort of animals?” Sam asked.

“All sorts,” Deeks told them. “Including horses and they all have the patches on one leg.”

They grimaced at each other at that. “Just stay sharp you two,” Callen told them.

“Copy,” Kensi’s voice was firm but even in that one word it was apparent she was no happier than the rest of them.

*

They continued to make slow progress through the facility, checking room after room for any sign of their bad guys.

Finally, they got to the end of the corridor and a room that was clearly an office. Callen heard a faint sound of movement within and raised his fist to stop his partner. They inched even closer and risked a peek round the door, seeing a man sorting paperwork.

Sam gave a few hand signals to indicate he would move around back, come in via the other door they could see. Callen nodded in understanding and gestured back that he would wait a few minutes to give Sam time to get into position.

Sam ghosted away on light feet, quiet despite his size. Callen took a couple of deep breaths as he waited, mentally counting down the time until Sam would be ready.

When the required time had elapsed, Callen moved round the door, gun held up. “Federal Agents, don’t move, hands where I can see them,” he barked.

The man looked up startled, freezing for a second. Then he dropped the folders he was holding onto the desk and raised his hands.

“Don’t shoot officer,” he said to Callen.

Callen didn’t bother to correct him, just moved forward, gun still up to check the rest of the room. Sam was in the other doorway, watching closely but keeping his distance. Satisfied there were no other threats present, Callen walked up to their suspect, holstering his gun at his back. 

Sam kept his gun trained on the man the whole time, as Callen reached to start searching him. Before he could do so though, the suspect grabbed him and whirled them round to face Sam. 

“Let me go or I’ll stick him,” the man snarled.

Callen was frozen in shock for a second, then felt the scratch of a needle against his neck, rather than the blade of a knife that the comment suggested and he stayed frozen.

“Don’t do this,” Sam’s voice was calm but stern.

The man laughed nastily. “I mean it, man. If you don’t want your buddy here to turn into a zombie like all those people out there, you’ll let me go.”

“We’re on our way,” Kensi’s voice was calm in his ear.

Sam nodded. “Alright,” he said. “I understand what you’re saying.” He lowered his gun and took a step back.

The man holding him began to move backwards, dragging Callen along with him.

“I thought you were going to let him go,” Sam said, raising his gun again.

“Not till I’m clear,” the suspect retorted.

They made a crazy procession down the corridor, Callen being dragged along by the crazy guy with the needle, both of them going backwards. Sam followed the whole time, gun ready, but without a good enough shot to avoid hitting Callen too. Another time, Callen might have told him to do it anyway, but not when he had a needle with some weird drug still hovering near his neck.

“Almost there,” Kens’s voice whispered in his ear and Callen fought not to tense up in preparation for their attack.

They turned down a new corridor while Sam still followed behind.

“Let him go or we’ll shoot,” Kensi’s voice was loud and authoritative behind him and Callen felt relieved.

Sam had his gun raised and ready again as well, as they stumbled to a stop in the middle of the corridor. As the suspect started to drag him round in an awkward turn to face the new threat, Callen took his opportunity, throwing his elbow into the guy’s stomach and kicking out at his knee at the same time.

“Now Sam!” he shouted as he threw himself clear.

Three guns rang out and Callen felt blood splash his face as the man fell to the ground beside him. Callen landed in an awkward heap next to him and just stayed down for a minute, taking stock of himself.

“G!” Sam ran forward to him.

“I’m good,” he said, lifting a hand to stop his partner. 

Sam snorted and hit the ground next to him on his knees, making Callen wince sympathetically. “Let me check you,” he insisted.

“Seriously, he didn’t get me,” Callen told him, trying to push Sam’s hand away.

Sam ignored him, gripping his chin gently but firmly so he could turn Callen’s head and check the side of his neck.

“Needle’s secure,” Deeks called and Callen glanced across to see the Detective dropping a syringe wrapped in a forensics glove into an evidence bag. He wore gloves as well and Callen was pleased to see he was taking extra precautions.

Kensi had her hand to her ear and Callen could hear the report she was making to Hetty, summoning their back up and extra staff including veterinarians for the animals they’d found.

“And Mr Callen?” Hetty’s voice came through clearly.

“Is fine,” he said firmly, before anyone else could reply. “The guy didn’t get me with his zombie drug, the only thing hurt is my dignity because I let him get the drop on me like that.”

Kensi and Deeks both snorted laughter at that, but Sam just shook his head in fond exasperation. “He’s fine Hetty,” he agreed, getting to his feet.

Callen smirked as his partner and pushed himself upright as well. “Although I wouldn’t say no to washing my face,” he added.

“Wait, what?” That got him three concerned looks.

“It’s just the bad guy’s blood,” Callen reassured them.

Sam gripped his arm hard. “Come on, bathroom now,” he ordered.

“Sam!” Callen protested, trying to pull free.

“Mr Callen, do as your partner says, we have no way of knowing if this man was infected or not,” Hetty’s voice was calm but stern through the earwig.

Callen sighed and allowed Sam to guide him into a bathroom down the hall. “Are the medics on the way?” Sam asked.

“Do not worry Mr Hanna, they will be with you momentarily,” Hetty assured them.

“We’ll go guide them in,” Kensi called from where they’d left the junior partners in the corridor.

“Good idea,” Sam agreed and their footsteps soon receded in the distance.

Sam gave him a handful of paper towels and Callen wet them before scrubbing his face thoroughly, leaning forward to check in the tiny mirror that he was clean. He then swapped the dirty towels for some dry ones and rubbed himself dry. Sam was washing his hands and Callen guessed he wanted to be sure he was okay after he’d grabbed Callen’s face back there in the corridor.

Once Sam was done, Callen washed his hands as well, before turning to his partner. “All clean mom,” he said lightly.

Sam just shook his head but Kensi calling out to them ensured he didn’t get a chance to respond. Callen followed Sam back out of the bathroom and down to where the medics waited at the end of the corridor. Other personnel in Hazmat suits were starting to swarm the dead body and Callen was glad to leave them to it.

He thought the chances of the guy being infected when he was still walking around and talking normally were pretty small, but they didn’t know the incubation period for the drug, so Hetty’s caution was probably warranted. Didn’t mean he had to like it though. He knew he had a decontamination shower in his near future and the loss of his clothes. At least it wasn’t his favorite shirt though.

*

Sure enough, Callen had gotten the indignity of stripping and scrubbing, while his clothes were bagged and taken away to be incinerated. He grumbled to himself the whole time, as there was no one around to hear him. He’d surrendered his earwig and phone to Sam, along with his gun and badge. At least the Hazmat team had agreed none of those items needed to be destroyed. He didn’t really wanted to incur the wrath of Hetty when she got the bill to replace them. 

Although he knew he wouldn’t face the cost himself, despite her remarks to the contrary, she’d never once billed any of them for damaged or destroyed clothing or equipment.

“Just make sure you have my go bag ready for when I’m done,” Callen had instructed Sam before he’d been ushered away. “I am not riding back to the office in scrubs.”

Sam smirked. “Don’t worry G, I’ll protect your dignity and your assets.”

Callen just shook his head at that, remembering when they’d been exposed to botulinum and forced to strip and scrub in that mall after his dive into the fountain, courtesy of his partner. On that occasion, they’d both had to wear scrubs back to the office, much to Kensi’s delight. It had at least provided her with a little light relief in the immediate aftermath of Dom’s disappearance.

This time at least Callen wasn’t stuck in a mall being scrubbed by Hazmat. Instead, they moved into one of the empty rooms in the facility and utilized that. Once they were done, a doctor came in for a blood sample. Callen gritted his teeth at the needle going in, but it wasn’t as bad as being stuck by his partner with the botulinum antidote.

“It’ll be a couple of hours Agent Callen,” the doctor told him. “We can analyze the sample here for the protein marker that indicates the drug.”

Callen nodded. “Sure,” he agreed. He remembered that much from Nell’s briefing on the case, although the details hadn’t really meant much to him.

Resigned to waiting, Callen settled on the small bed in the room. The rest of the team were back in the office they’d found their suspect in, searching for evidence. Without his earwig or phone, he had no way to keep up with what was happening, so Callen closed his eyes and zoned out, not quite sleeping but not really awake either.

*

“Wakey wakey Sleeping Beauty,” his partner’s less than dulcet tones got his attention a while later.

Callen looked up at him. “I’m not sleeping,” he said, shifting to a sitting position.

“If the snore fits,” Sam said with a smirk.

“I wasn’t snoring,” the protest was automatic.

“Whatever G. If you’re done sleeping on the job, we can get going.” Sam lifted Callen’s go bag to illustrate his point.

Callen swung to his feet and reached for it. “I’m cleared?”

“Yeah, no zombie drug,” Sam agreed. 

Callen nodded in relief, stripping off the scrub top in favor of the shirt from his bag. Sam just stood there and watched.

“What’s the sit rep?” Callen asked, as he fished underwear and socks out of the bag, then a pair of jeans. He didn’t have any modesty around Sam and carried on changing into the fresh clothes while Sam gave him the rundown.

“We recovered a laptop and tablet as well as the computer hard drive and they’ve both gone to Eric for analysis. Kensi and Deeks are finishing up with the paperwork and have several boxes to take back for further examination, Hetty has tasked Nell to help with that. You and I are going to our suspect’s address.”

Callen looked up at that. “You ID’d him?”

Sam rolled his eyes. “No we just picked a random address.”

Callen shook his head and Sam smirked before continuing on. “He’s called Eddie Shapiro, a small time con man up till now. He’s got an address in Culver City, so once you’re finished we can go.”

“I just need some boots,” Callen said. It was the one thing he didn’t keep in his go bag.

Sam smirked at him. “Lucky for you Deeks was willing to sacrifice a pair for the cause,” he said and lifted up a pair of boots.

Callen grabbed them from him and sat down to put them on and lace them up. “I guess I should be grateful we’re the same size.”

“Yeah, cause you’d look pretty silly trying to wander around in a pair of my shoes,” Sam agreed.

Callen stood up again and stamped his feet a bit to get comfortable. Then he grabbed up his bag. “I’m ready,” he said.

Sam held him back for a second. “I’m glad you’re okay G,” he said seriously and he leaned forward for a short kiss.

Callen smiled at him. “Me too Big Guy,” he said softly. “Me too.”

And with that, they were on their way out the door, glad to be leaving this place behind.

*

Their search of Eddie Shapiro’s apartment was a bust, so they headed back towards the office. Callen called in for an update en route.

“Nothing new so far,” Nell reported, sounding frustrated. “Eric is still working on the electronics and we’re still sifting documents from the facility.”

“What about the CDC?” Sam asked, phone on speaker so they could both contribute to the impromptu brainstorming.

Nell made a sound. “They confirmed thirty four patients on the top floor, all still comatose so far. They’re continuing to analyze the drug, because they don’t want to risk just removing the patches until they know how the patients will react.”

“And the animals?” Callen asked.

This time Nell sounded sad as she replied. “The vets all concluded the kindest thing to do would be to euthanize them all.”

Callen and Sam exchanged a glance at that. “Any particular reason why?”

“Just because of the unknown nature of the drug and the effects. It was felt that without any information on the long term prognosis, it was better to put them all to sleep, rather than try and care for them. There isn’t anyone really equipped to deal with this sort of thing with animals. The CDC agreed that there wasn’t anything they could contribute either.”

“Alright Nell, thanks. We’ll be back soon,” Callen concluded the call. Checking his watch, he made a decision. “Let’s stop and pick up food for everyone,” he told Sam, who nodded in agreement.

“Any preference as to where?” he asked.

Callen checked where they were and suggested, “Chinese?”

Sam agreed and Callen picked up his phone again to make the order. They’d done this often enough that he knew everyone’s preferences and was soon agreeing with the lady on the phone that it’d be ready by the time they get there in about 45 minutes.

*

Back at the office, Nell went to get Eric from the gadget room, while Kensi moved things around so they could sit in the little area behind their desks.

“I’ll get some sodas,” Deeks volunteered.

Hetty chose that moment to appear. “No need Mr Deeks,” she said. “I have it, as you say, covered.” She held aloft a couple of six packs of Tsingtao beer.

“That’s what I’m talking about!” Deeks exclaimed, rubbing his hands together.

“Only one each, I’m afraid, as we’re all still on the clock,” Hetty admonished him, as she gave them to Sam to open, while Callen passed round boxes of food and chopsticks for everyone.

They were soon all settled down eating, leaving aside any work related discussions as they enjoyed the food. While they might all be hardened to the unpleasantness of the job to some degree, by mutual agreement they tried to avoid the subject when taking breaks to eat. 

Once the eating slowed down, though, Hetty spoke up. “Where are we at ladies and gentlemen?”

“I’ve confirmed there’s nothing of value on the tablet you recovered,” Eric started. “That was the easiest to examine and eliminate. The laptop and PC hard drive both have state of the art encryption and are taking a little longer, but I’m confident I’ll get there eventually. No one employs that sort of protection for no reason.”

“We found medical records for all the patients in the facility,” Nell chimed in next. “But unfortunately they’re just historic records, nothing related to whatever has been done to them since they were taken.”

Callen nodded. “They probably kept those records electronically,” he noted. “As you know, Shapiro’s apartment was a bust. No computer of any sort, no paperwork relating to his employment at the facility or what he was supposed to be doing there. No pay checks or wage statements or anything like that. Not even family correspondence.”

“It was probably just a flop house,” Sam concluded his partner’s description of their whole lot of nothing. “Even the furniture looked rented.”

“That might give us a clue though,” Kensi suggested. “We can check the details of who rented the place and how it was paid for.”

Nell nodded. “I’ll get on it,” she said.

“And what about the two of you?” Hetty asked, gesturing between Kensi and Deeks.

Deeks pulled a face. “Well, we found plenty of records relating to the basic maintenance and upkeep of the facility, although nothing more recent than three months ago so far, which is when we pinpointed the first patients arriving.” He made air quotes for the word patients, grimacing again as he did so.

“We’re looking into the prior history of the property as well,” Kensi added. “But so far again, it’s mostly older stuff. We can continue to dig into it though.”

“Please do Ms Blye,” Hetty agreed. “However, these are all matters that can wait for a new day. We aren’t going to get any results before tomorrow and it’s growing late. I want you all to go home and get some rest, that includes you Mr Callen,” she fixed him with one of her trademark stares.

“Don’t worry Hetty, I’ll make sure he does,” Sam told her with a grin.

Callen glared at them both, though it was ineffective as usual. They were both immune to him. “Our victims don’t get to go home and take a break,” he pointed out.

Hetty nodded. “This is true Mr Callen, however we cannot help them at the moment. They are in good hands with the CDC and you all need to be fresh or mistakes start to get made.”

Kensi and Deeks had already headed back to their desks while Callen argued, Nell and Eric close behind. Sam stood up and grabbed his partner by the shoulder.

“Come on G, no point arguing and you know it.”

Callen sighed, but acquiesced, knowing that in truth there wasn’t anything else they could realistically achieve that night.

“Good night all,” Hetty called as she headed back to her office space. They all chorused the words back, heading out en masse. 

*

The next morning, things were looking up. Nell briefed them all in Ops, while Eric continued to work on the computer encryption.

“Eddie Shapiro did a dime in Fulsome for stabbing someone during a robbery,” she explained, prison records appearing on the big screen. “His cell mate was one Laredo Felix, a Venezuelan national.” A picture and another set of records appeared on screen. “He was busted for selling cocaine for the Cotolo Cartel.”

The door slid open just then and Eric burst into the room. “I did, I got it!” he exclaimed, hurrying forward. His hair was going in all directions, as he reached for his tablet.

“Eric?” Sam’s voice was a mixture of amused and cautionary.

As their Tech Operator punched frantically at his tablet, Hetty arrived in Ops. “Do I understand we have progress?” she asked the room at large.

“Apparently so,” Callen gestured to Eric as he said it.

“Mr Beale?” Hetty asked.

After a minute, he looked up. “Uh yeah, sorry,” he stuttered. “I managed to break into the laptop finally and that allowed me to get into the computer hard drive. And that,” he added triumphantly, with a gesture at the data now filling the big screen, “Allowed me to access the records on the drug.”

The rest of them immediately focussed intently on what was appearing. “Looks Greek to me,” Deeks muttered after a moment.

“Not quite,” Hetty murmured as she leaned forward. “Are you sending this to CDC?”

“Already on it,” Nell said from where she was now seated at her computer, tapping quickly at the keyboard.

“Good job Eric,” Sam said approvingly.

Eric looked up briefly. “Uh thanks, but that’s not all,” he said. “I should have the patient records momentarily and then there’s some financial data as well, but I thought the medical stuff had priority.”

“Of course,” Hetty agreed. 

Kensi spoke up. “What about the people involved?”

“I doubt there’s a handy org chart to be found Kensalina,” Deeks said.

“Financial data may well give us payment information,” Callen interjected as the junior partners glared at each other. “But I’m more interested in this Felix guy that Nell found.”

Nell jumped back up from her seat at that. “I’ve sent everything Eric found so far to CDC and they already have a team getting to work on it,” she said. “Meanwhile, I found an address for Felix in Silver Lake, on your phones now.”

“Go, all of you,” Hetty told them with a gesture and the team hurried out the room. 

Eric followed them down the stairs. “As soon as I have anything else for you, I’ll update you,” he assured them as he headed back to the gadget room.

“Eric,” Callen called to him and he turned back. “Seriously, good job,” he said.

Eric blushed. “Thanks,” he said and Callen knew he didn’t offer the Tech Operator praise as often as he should.

The team headed down the tunnel to the armory to gather gear. They wouldn’t take any chances with Felix, as they had no idea what they were heading into. 

*

They were all surprised when they get to the address Nell had given them for Felix, as it turned out to be a somewhat seedy looking apartment building.

“Doesn’t look much like the sort of place a successful coke dealer would live,” Deeks commented as they stopped a fair way down the street, so they could check the place first, before they approached.

“Could be he lives in the neighborhood where he finds his customers,” Kensi replied.

Callen cut through their speculation. “Why don’t the two of you go round the back, looks like there should be an alleyway,” he said. “Sam and I will go knock on the door, see what we can find.”

“Sure, we always get the back alleys,” Deeks said, sounding less than happy.

A noise that was probably Kensi hitting her partner was apparent over the comms, as Callen and Sam exited the Challenger. They exchanged an eye roll as they headed up the street.

“Felix is on the top floor,” Sam said as they entered the apartment building. There was an elevator, but it was out of order, so they headed for the stairs.

The building was quiet, with a slightly musty smell to it and they made their way upstairs in silence, keeping to the sides of the stairs, hands hovering near their guns, but not actually drawing them. 

When they reached the top floor, it was dimly lit, only one light fixture unbroken. The partners exchanged looks, but still held back on drawing their guns, slowly heading down the corridor to 4D, which was the number Nell had given them for Felix’s unit.

Callen pressed his ear to the door, then turned to shake his head, not hearing anything from inside. He and Sam had a conversation in looks and shrugs, before Callen reached out to knock on the door.

“You won’t find the cat,” a deep voice with a cut glass English accent came from behind them and the partners turned quickly to see who had spoken.

Sam found his voice first. “The cat?” he asked.

“Felix honey, we call him The Cat,” this time they could hear the emphasis which made it clear the speaker was using a nickname.

They exchanged blank looks. “Felix, cat, like the cat food?” Callen and Sam just shook their heads, confused and still somewhat surprised by the person confronting them.

“Who are you?” Callen asked, taking in the heavily made up individual who was wearing an elaborate dress and very high heeled shoes.

The person, Callen couldn’t decide whether they were a drag queen or something else simpered and held out a hand toward Sam, who they hadn’t stopped staring at since the partners had turned to them.

“I’m Tiffany Box, but you can call me Fanny,” they said with a provocative look.

Callen snorted a laugh at Sam’s wide-eyed stare, but he gamely took the hand held out to him and bowed over it. “Pleased to meet you, Ms Box, I’m Sam Hanna,” he said in a serious tone. “This is my partner Callen.”

“Just Callen?” they asked, clasping Sam’s hand in their other one when he looked like he might let go.

Callen gave his best smile. “Just Callen,” he agreed. “Can you tell us where The Cat is?” he used the same emphasis as their informant.

Ms Box sighed and reluctantly let Sam’s hand go. “He’s not been around for a couple of days,” they said. “His mom’s been sick, he said, so he might be at her place.”

“His mom?” Sam asked.

Ms Box nodded. “That’s what he told me.”

“Do you happen to have her address?” Sam continued the questioning and Callen was happy to let him. He was pretty much being ignored anyway.

“I’m sorry,” and they did look genuinely sorry at not having the information. “He mentioned something about Glendale once, but I don’t know if that was his mom or his aunt.”

Callen looked at his partner. “His aunt?”

Ms Box put a hand to her chest. “I believe that’s what he said, but I could be mistaken. Just what’s this about anyway?”

Sam did his best to give them a reassuring smile. “It’s just some questions about an old friend,” he said. “Nothing to be concerned about.”

“Well, like I said, he definitely mentioned Glendale one time, but that’s all I can tell you.”

Sam reached and took their hand again. “Well, you’ve been very helpful Ms Box, so thank you.”

He got another simpering smile in return. “For you honey, anytime.”

Callen coughed this time to cover his laugh, shaking his head and turning away. They couldn’t risk going into Felix’s apartment now and it seemed like he was going to be a dead end anyway, although he would get Nell to follow up on possible family members.

He touched his earwig as he headed down the stairs. “Alright guys, we might as well head back to the office,” he told Kensi and Deeks.

“Sure,” Kensi agreed. Callen could hear suppressed amusement in her voice. “Sounds like you found quite the informant there.”

“Oh we found something alright,” Callen muttered, hearing Deeks snort with laughter and feeling his partner’s glare on his back as he pulled the front door open. They just had to hope Eric could find them some more information on the hard drive he was decrypting soon.

Once they were in the Challenger, Sam gave him a Look. “What?” Callen asked innocently.

“What?” Sam parroted back.

Callen shrugged. “What was all that back there anyway?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about G,” Sam told him, as he started the car.

“You and Ms Box,” Callen told him, affecting an English accent for their informant’s name.

“I didn’t see you stepping up.”

Callen laughed. “They didn’t even know I was there.”

Sam gave him the side-eye for that, so Callen laughed some more, lifting his hands. “Honestly, I might as well not have been there, for all the attention you were getting.”

“I was being polite,” Sam protested.

Callen snorted loudly at that. “I was!” Sam insisted.

Callen lifted his hands. “Whatever you say Big Guy.”

“You know that fanny means something else in England don’t you?”

Callen rolled his eyes. “You know I worked in London right?”

“I do.”

“Then yeah, I know that it means something different over there.”

“Well then, I wasn’t going to call them by that name.”

“Makes sense I guess,” Callen agreed.

“Thank you,” Sam’s reply was sarcastic.

“Uh if you guys are done,” Eric’s voice broke in at that point.

Callen touched his earwig. “What is it Eric?” He’d almost forgotten they were on comms, but they hadn’t said anything inappropriate.

“Nell just confirmed that Felix’s mom did live in Glendale, but not any more.”

“Where is she now?” Sam asked.

“Uh, nowhere and everywhere,” Eric sounded hesitant as he said it.

“Eric!” Sam’s tone was impatient.

“She died six months ago,” Eric said in a rush. “She was cremated and her ashes scattered in the Cascades.”

“Alright it’s a dead end then,” Sam said.

“Literally,” Deeks’ voice chimed in over their earwigs.

“Alright, we’re heading back then and you can update us on anything else you’ve found on that hard drive,” Callen decided.

The others murmured agreements and their comms went quiet as they continued back towards the office.

*

The rest of the day went the same as the previous one had, trying to track down anyone involved in the case, be it people buying supplies or looking after their victims or anything. Eric and Nell had dozens of searches running, but all they came up with were more aliases or shell corporations, which eventually all dead ended without any answers to the identities of the actual people involved.

Callen was getting frustrated. “Think people, there must be something we’re missing,” he said, getting up to pace.

“Let’s go back over everything we know,” Sam suggested calmly.

“Alright,” Kensi agreed. “Our four sailors, they were taken together outside a club, that must have taken several people right?”

Deeks nodded. “But all we found was the van they used, burned out and abandoned. No trace evidence there. And the cameras in the area gave us nothing because they all wore hoodies and masks.”

“What about the van itself?” Sam asked.

“Stolen an hour before the abduction,” Nell spoke up. “But it was taken from a street with no cameras and when we did find it through Kaleidoscope, we weren’t able to get any clear pictures of the driver and there was never anyone in the passenger seat.”

“And the FBI have confirmed it was the same with all the other victims,” Eric chimed in. “Although most of them were abducted individually, there were a handful that were taken in pairs. But each time nothing to see on traffic or other surveillance cams, always stolen vehicles and never any clear shots of any faces.”

Sam continued. “All the attempts at facial recognition we have run on the few partial shots we’ve got have been a bust.”

“What about the animals?” Callen asked, looking around the team.

“ASPCA assisted with their disposal,” Deeks said, pulling a face. “There were horses, dogs, cats, rabbits and even a couple of rats in the outbuildings we found. None of them came up on any searches of social media etc as missing pets or stolen animals, not even the horses.”

Hetty appeared in their midst. “So it seems we have a whole lot of nothing.”

Callen made a frustrated noise. “That doesn’t help Hetty!”

“Actually Mr Callen, I believe it does. Because one thing is clear, this is a well funded and professionally organized operation, which would suggest it is something other than a small group of individuals.”

“You’re suggesting a terrorist organization,” Kensi said with a thoughtful look.

“Or a foreign nation,” Sam added.

That earned him looks from the rest of the team. “What? It’s a possibility,” he insisted.

“No, Sam’s right,” Callen said, leaning against his desk. “What would a terrorist organization get out of turning people into zombies?” He used air quotes on the last word. “They’re just interested in killing people usually. But a foreign government would definitely have a use for people they could drug, especially if it made them susceptible to some sort of mind control or suggestion.”

Eric and Nell exchanged a look. “We’ll start new searches on the watch lists and no fly lists,” Nell suggested. “We can make sure that no one on any of them have somehow got into Los Angeles in the last few weeks and been missed somehow.”

“Good,” Hetty nodded. “And we can also run checks on passports and known aliases of certain operatives from other countries. I’ll get you those names.”

“Alright, we’re on it,” Eric said and they headed for the stairs to the Ops centre.

Callen looked at his partner. “Time we paid Arkady a visit,” he said with a smirk.

Sam shook his head. “Great, just what my day needed.”

“And Ms Blye, Mr Deeks, you should liaise with the FBI, see what they and the CDC have come up with recently. Head to the boat shed and I’ll ask their representatives to meet you there.”

“On it.” “Got it.” The partners acknowledged Hetty’s orders and headed for the tunnel, following Callen and Sam who were already on their way out. 

*

They left Arkady’s without having learned anything useful. The big Russian had been spooked by their description of the drug and it’s effects, denying any knowledge of who might be using it or why. He had been emphatic that it was nothing to do with Russia.

Still, something he’d said about friends and enemies resonated with Callen and his steps slowed as they approached the car, thinking it over.

“G?” Sam’s calling of his name got his attention and he looked up. “What is it?” Sam’s gaze sharpened, obviously getting that Callen was on to something.

Callen pulled his phone from his pocket and hit the speed dial for Hetty, putting the call on speaker as soon as she answered.

“What do you have Mr Callen?” her voice was as crisp and calm as ever.

Callen shook his head, even though Hetty couldn’t see. “What if,” he said slowly.

“What if what Mr Callen?”

Callen bit his lip, still thinking it through, then looked up, gaze coming into focus on his partner. “What if it isn’t another country at all?” he asked. “What if it’s someone even closer to home? What Arkady said about not knowing your friends from your enemies got me thinking. Hetty, could this be the agency’s doing?”

“CIA?” Sam asked, concern and disgust warring in his tone.

Callen waved him off, waiting for their boss to respond, knowing Hetty was thinking it through and considering all the permutations the same way he had.

“It certainly could be possible,” Hetty finally said, sounding distant and weary. “Come home gentlemen, we should discuss this further.”

“On our way,” Sam said and they quickly got into the car as Hetty said something about recalling the others, before the line cut out.

*

When they got back to the office, there was no sign of either Hetty or the rest of the team, so Callen just led the way up the stairs to Ops. As soon as he and Sam got inside and the door closed, Eric pressed a button on his keyboard and everything went into lockdown.

“Shadow mode engaged,” he said way too happily.

Callen and Sam joined the others around the light table and Eric stepped up as well, tablet in hand.

“Do we really think the CIA is behind this?” Kensi asked. “Hetty?”

Hetty sighed. “Unfortunately Ms Blye, it is entirely plausible.”

“But why?” Deeks asked.

“It’s not like they don’t have a history of this sort of thing,” Sam chipped in. “Mind control experiments and all that other crazy stuff they did both before and during the Cold War.”

“But a zombie drug?” Nell protested unhappily.

Hetty held up a hand. “I know Miss Jones, it is most disturbing. But we must decide how we are to proceed with our investigation now. We need to find out if it is the Agency and if it is, how we put a stop to it. Remember it was only because of our four sailors disappearing that we even found out that there was something going on. The FBI certainly weren’t aware of it. This is not going to be easy.” 

“You’re awfully quiet over there partner,” Sam observed.

Callen looked up from his contemplation of his boots. “I may have a way in,” he said quietly.

“Go on Mr Callen.”

“Someone I knew when I worked in the Agency,” Callen said. “He’s still in the Special Activities Division.” He walked over to Eric’s desk. “Can you ping a phone for me Eric?”

“Sure,” Eric sat back at his keyboard and brought up the relevant program.

Callen rattled off the numbers and after a moment, the map appeared on the big screen.

“Sacramento,” Eric reported, swiveling his chair around to watch the others.

Callen nodded and looked back at Hetty. “Very well Mr Callen, you have a go.”

“I’ll grab my gear,” he said.

“It’ll take us about six hours to drive it,” Sam said, moving towards the door.

Callen held up a hand and got in his partner’s way. “Slow your roll Big Guy, this is a solo op.”

Sam snorted. “Slow my roll?” he repeated.

“He’s right, Mr Hanna,” Hetty interjected. “This isn’t something Mr Callen requires back up for. You’ll be needed here.”

“But Hetty,” Sam turned back to her.

Hetty held up a hand and Callen took the opportunity to slip out the door and head downstairs. He wanted to be on the road as soon as possible.

*

Callen was headed to the parking garage for the pool car he’d chosen when he heard Granger’s voice. He paused and waited.

“Why didn’t you tell him Henrietta?”

“Tell him what Owen?”

“That SecNav wants to shut it down.”

Callen held as still as possible, slowing his breathing. This was the first time he’d heard anything about the case being closed and it angered him. He waited for Hetty’s response.

“This lead of Mr Callen’s is a legitimate one and it should be pursued,” she spoke calmly but Callen was used to hearing Hetty’s nuances and could tell there was a slight hint of anger in her tone. He wondered if Granger would pick up on it as well.

“And this wouldn’t have anything to do with your boy nearly getting stuck by the zombie drug would it?”

Callen trembled as he fought not to react to the venom in Granger’s tone. He knew the Assistant Director didn’t like him, but didn’t think his animosity ran that deep.

“You know perfectly well I don’t play favorites Owen.” Hetty’s tone was all ice where Granger had been fire and Callen let out a slow breath at that. It was true, despite the length of their shared history, Hetty had never once treated him any differently on the job.

“Then why are you letting him run with this and not shutting it down?” Granger asked again.

Callen shook his head unconsciously, guessing that Hetty had maneuvered them here so that he’d hear this conversation.

“I told you, this is a legitimate operation and we have a duty to these people to try and find out why they were kidnapped and drugged like this. None of them deserve to be treated the way they were and we must ensure it isn’t repeated.”

“CDC are making good progress with finding a treatment,” Granger said. “Thanks to the information Beale found on the computer that was recovered.”

“It’s not good enough Owen and you know it.” Hetty’s voice was emphatic as she spoke. Then Callen heard her footsteps move away, followed by the heavier tread of the Assistant Director. He waited a few moments to make sure they were gone before he continued his journey to the car he’d chosen. He had all the more reason to make sure he got to Sacramento as quickly as possible, so he could find his contact and hopefully the people responsible for the place they’d found, in order to shut them down for good.

*

Once in Sacramento, Callen booked into a motel in keeping with the role he was playing and then set about making himself visible to his contact without it ever appearing deliberate or as though he knew the other man was there.

Finally, on the third day, it worked. “Gomez!” he looked up at the call of his cover name.

“Zindaur,” he said, making sure he sounded just as surprised to see the other man. “What are you doing here?”

That earned him a smirk. “Same as you, probably.”

Callen made sure he looked as downbeat as possible. “Trying to find an honest living?” he asked.

Zindaur – or whatever his real name was – looked surprised at that. “You’re not in the game any more?”

Callen shook his head and gestured to the seat opposite him in the diner he’d chosen. Zindaur sat down and the waitress appeared immediately, mug and pot of coffee in hand. They waited for her to pour and promise to return for their order in a few minutes, then walk away, before continuing their conversation.

“Left a while ago,” Callen murmured, managing to look pathetic as he said it. “Things went wrong and I was left to carry the can.”

Zindaur shook his head at that. “Man what a waste.”

The waitress chose that point to come back, so they both quickly ordered and waited while she dropped off napkins and cutlery before leaving again.

“What about you?” Callen asked, when they were alone again.

Zindaur smirked. “Private enterprise man, I got out of the game a while ago.”

Callen affected surprise at that. That matched Eric’s initial intel, although digging deeper had proved it to be a lie. “Sounds like you lucked out man.”

“Oh luck had nothing to do with it,” Zindaur smirked again as he said it, before picking up his coffee and drinking heartily.

They waited out the arrival of their breakfasts and a refill on their coffee, before conversation could resume once more. “Enjoy boys,” the waitress said as she walked away.

Callen immediately started eating, the food here was cheap, but good and he didn’t have to fake his enjoyment. Zindaur did likewise and there was mostly silence between them for a few minutes.

“So why Sacramento?” Zindaur was the one to break the silence, as he sipped his coffee again.

Callen carried on eating for a couple more minutes, before laying his cutlery on his mostly empty plate and sighing. “I was in Los Angeles for a while, but needed a change of scenery. Didn’t want to leave this coast though.”

Zindaur nodded. “You grew up in L.A. right?”

Callen nodded back, drinking his coffee. He wanted tea, but this diner didn’t serve it, so he made do with coffee instead. “Guess I’m just a California boy at heart,” he smirked. 

“I might be able to help you,” Zindaur said. 

Callen raised his eyebrows and looked eager. “Really man? That’d be great. I’m not picky, I’ll do anything.”

“Sure,” Zindaur’s smile was all teeth. “I need to speak to my bosses, which will take a day or two, but I’ll get back to you. Say here, same time in two days?”

Callen nodded and kept looking eager and desperate. “That’s really great man, thank you.”

Zindaur stood and pulled out his wallet. “No problems and breakfast is on me alright?” He dropped several bills on the table then sauntered away with a wave to the waitress.

Once he was out the door, Callen slumped back in his seat and breathed out hard. That had gone better than he’d hoped.

“Everything okay honey?” The waitress’s voice caught his attention and he looked up and found a smile for her.

“Everything’s great,” he said and slid out of his seat. “Have a great day.”

She smiled back at him. “You too honey.”

Callen left as she started to clear the table. He would head for an internet cafe he’d scoped out on his arrival so he could report back to Ops on his progress. It was more secure than emailing via the burn phone he’d brought with him. But he would still use the phone to check in with Sam, knowing his partner would appreciate a more personal update.

*

Two days later, Zindaur had shown up for breakfast again, dropping off a phone as he took out money to pay the bill once more. “Keep it on,” he said. “Boss’ll call you when he needs you.”

Callen had just nodded in understanding and scooped the phone up and into his pocket. Later, he’d emailed the details of the phone to Eric. Not because he expected it to lead anywhere, these guys were too careful for that, but that was what a good agent did, chased down every lead regardless.

He continued to spend the next few days acting like a tourist, visiting all the recommended sights, while he waited for the phone to ring. Unsurprisingly, when the call did come, it was in the early hours of the morning.

Callen wasn’t sleeping, he never did on an op. So it was easy to grab the phone from where it sat next to his portable chess set and thumb it on.

“Garden Center, corner of McKinley and 33rd, fifteen minutes,” a voice said before the line went dead again.

Callen grabbed his car keys and wallet, tucking them away, then added a gun. They would be expecting no less. He also added a few other weapons that they would be less likely to find, unless their search was very thorough. If it was, then he was screwed.

He punched the address into the car’s nav system as he pulled away. He could just about make it in the time allotted, thanks to the minimal traffic as this time of day. 

*

Once he got to the location, Callen drove around a couple of times, because he had the time to spare. He’d managed to text the details of the meet to Sam on his own burn phone, but knew there was nothing anyone could do from L.A. at this time of night and on such short notice.

There wasn’t anything suspicious he could see, so Callen pulled up next to a station wagon, under the roof that covered the approach to the front entrance. He resisted the temptation to pull his gun as he walked towards the door, which was propped open.

“Come in Mr Gomez,” a voice called from the far end of the room he found himself in.

Callen looked around, but it was dimly lit, with only a couple of overhead fixtures turned on and he couldn’t see the speaker. There was really nothing else he could do, so Callen walked towards where he’d heard the voice coming from.

As he reached the far side of the room, Zindaur appeared from the shadows, another man beside him. Callen sized up the stranger, who was a little bit taller than him, but looked almost emaciated, he was so thin. He was also brandishing a shotgun, which caused Callen to stutter to a stop.

The man caught his gaze and smirked. “Nothing for you to be concerned about, Mr Gomez,” he said. “Or rather, should I say Mr Walinksi.”

Callen just looked back at him, refusing to take the bait. They’d expected that he’d be checked out by Zindaur and whoever he was working for, so they’d laid their own careful trap. Eric had had a bogus NCIS database on a fake server for years, ever since Keelson had burned him. All of the team had aliases on there, instead of their real records and it had worked every time someone had tried to breach them since then.

Steven Walinksi was an old alias of Callen’s that he’d used numerous times and the NCIS agent by that name had just enough of a dirty record to attract the attention of Zindaur’s people, without making it seems suspicious that he’d still been working for the agency until recently.

“I’m Greg Tate,” the thin man told him, lowering the shotgun to his side. “Come on, we got coffee.”

Callen bit back the urge to say he preferred tea and just followed silently along behind Tate, while Zindaur brought up the rear.

Rather than going into another room though, Tate led him outside. “Thought we were going to have coffee and talk business?” Callen asked.

Tate turned to him. “Thought you were supposed to be Steve Walinksi, Agent Callen.”

“What?” Callen knew how to fake confused, even as a feeling of dread settled like ice in his stomach.

Zindaur came to stand beside Tate. “You may be good Callen, but we’re better,” he sneered.

Callen went for bewildered. “Honestly guys, I have no idea what, or who, you’re talking about.”

Tate raised the shotgun. “Time for the truth boy.”

Callen had his hands at his sides, but was able to ease the knife free from his sleeve and keep it concealed. The gun at his back was too far away, because Zindaur now had a gun in his hand as well. Callen considered his options lightning fast, knowing he would need to act quickly if he didn’t want a bullet somewhere he wouldn’t recover from.

“I said truth time boy,” Tate was getting impatient.

“What truth?” Callen asked, trying to stall for time. 

Zindaur snorted. “About why an NCIS agent is really trying to get involved in our company.”

“I told you, I’m sick of NCIS and I wanted a change,” Callen said. “Too many rules and laws to follow.”

“I don’t believe you,” Tate said and he raised the shotgun to point squarely at Callen’s middle.

Taking the decision to act, Callen threw the knife at Tate’s throat, ignoring the gurgling yell as the other man fell to the ground. He was already going for Zindaur, catching the other man off guard as Callen collided with him, wrestling for control of the gun.

Callen was lucky, he trained regularly with a Navy SEAL who had several inches and over 30lbs on him. It meant he knew exactly how to fight to take down his opponent fast and Zindaur really didn’t have a chance. Within a minute, Callen was dropping his body to the ground next to Tate.

Callen grimaced as he looked at the bodies. That was not how he had hoped things would go. The only plus side was that there hadn’t been any shots to disturb the neighbors. And this must be a camera free area, for them to risk having this meeting happen here.

Even as he thought that, Callen quickly searched the two bodies, finding no ID on either one and only one cellphone in Zindaur’s pocket. Callen tucked it away into his own coat and retrieved the knife from Tate’s throat with another grimace, wiping the blade clean before slipping it into another pocket.

He pulled out his own cell to take photos of both men, hoping that Eric might find something on facial recognition to help them. Satisfied there was nothing else he could do, Callen turned and headed back the way he’d come. He would get a few blocks away before calling into Ops, guessing Sam would have rallied the troops when he’d received Callen’s message about the meeting. He needed back up now, to try and find out who Tate and Zindaur really were and their base of operations. Callen wasn’t sure that the CIA really was involved, but only time would tell.

*

When Callen called into Ops, he wasn’t surprised when Hetty answered. “Sit rep Mr Callen.”

“I’m somewhere over the rainbow,” he replied, giving the designated code word. “Eric, I’m sending you several photos, you’ve got two dead guys, a car license and VIN as well as details of the one phone they had between them.” He’d guessed that the Tech Operator was listening in.

“He’s on it Mr Callen,” Hetty responded. “Tell me what happened.”

So Callen did and left out none of the details. He concluded with, “I’d already checked out of my motel and I didn’t see any traffic cams in the neighborhood, so I should be clear. I would appreciate help in finding out more about who these guys were really working for though.”

“Mr Hanna is already en route to you,” Hetty told him. “He left LAX around an hour ago, so I would suggest you head to the airport to meet him.”

Callen nodded even though no one could see him. “I’ll leave this car in long term parking and Sam can hire something there, it’s less risky as we don’t know for sure that they’ve got his real identity.”

“Very good Mr Callen, check in with me again once you’re secure.”

Callen agreed and then hung the phone, the thought of his partner’s imminent arrival easing the pressure he was feeling. There was still a chance of salvaging something from this trip and getting new intel to help with their case.

*

When Sam came off the plane, he found his partner waiting for him. He hadn’t expected the hug, they weren’t exactly big on hugs. 

Then Callen whispered in his ear. “Tan jacket, red linen trousers at ten o’clock.” And he understood.

Sam eyed the man, but he was hugging an older couple and he said as much to Callen, who still had hold of him.

“I think we’re good G, they were behind me on the plane, that’s their grandson.”

Callen finally stepped back, although not before he brushed a quick kiss over Sam’s mouth. “Good to see you.”

Sam smiled. “You look like shit,” he said, not able to resist the teasing. “You haven’t been sleeping have you?”

“You know I need you to do that,” Callen brushed it off with a shrug, but Sam knew it was the truth.

He resisted the temptation to say anything else in so public a venue. “Let’s go collect the car.”

Callen fell into step beside him naturally and they brushed shoulders as they walked.

*

Once they had the car, they stopped a few blocks away in the parking lot of a diner, so they could get breakfast once they’d checked in with Ops.

Hetty answered the call again. “Gentlemen, any problems?”

“No, we’re clear,” Sam said. 

“Any news?” Callen asked. He wasn’t completely sure they were clear but could admit to being more than a little paranoid at the moment, so he was willing to trust his partner’s judgement.

Eric’s voice came on the line. “Good news,” he sounded chipper as he said it.

Callen exchanged a glance with Sam, that was what they needed. “Don’t keep us in suspense Beale,” Sam said.

“Right, sure.” Eric’s gulp was audible over the phone. “We got an address for you. Surprisingly, the station wagon your dead guys were using wasn’t stolen. I’ve sent the details to your phones. No IDs yet on said dead guys, but facial rec is still running on them. And the phone was a burner as expected, only used to call the one they gave you Callen.”

“We’ll check the address,” Sam said. “What can you tell us about it?”

Eric cleared his throat but it was Nell who spoke. “Owned by a shell corporation but it’s one of the ones we already uncovered in our searches relating to the facility here, so that’s a good sign. We’re going back over that company, to see if we missed anything in our initial searches that might help us.”

“Sounds good,” Callen said. “What about Kensi and Deeks?”

“They’re working with the FBI on the victims’ records,” Hetty said. “And Mr Callen?”

Her tone was stern. “Yes Hetty?”

“I’ve cleared things with Sacramento PD over the men in the garden center,” she said. 

Callen was relieved. “Thank you.”

“We should get on this address,” Sam said. “We’ll call back when we’ve checked it out.”

“Very well Mr Hanna,” Hetty agreed and the line went dead.

Callen looked at his partner. “Breakfast to go?”

Sam nodded. “Looks like it.”

*

The house was in a quiet residential neighborhood. The partners drove round the block once, but it looked clear. Once Sam had parked down the street, he pulled a small box from his pocket.

“Is this really the right time to propose?” Callen quipped.

Sam rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Very funny G, it’s an earwig, I suggest you put it in.”

“And you’re just giving this to me now why?”

“Because you didn’t need it before,” Sam told him.

Callen shook his head but took the earwig and slipped it into place, then activated it. “Eric, we’re at the address,” he reported. “It looks clear, so we’re going in.”

“Copy that,” Eric’s voice came back.

The partners exited the car and headed up to their target address. Sam checked the door, but it was locked, so he pulled the lock picks from his pocket and handed it over to Callen, who raised his eyebrows, but didn’t say anything, just got to work.

It didn’t take long and they were pushing the door open, guns in hand and cautiously entering the house. A couple of hand signals had them going in different directions to check the downstairs rooms. Finding nothing and no one, they reconvened at the stairs. Exchanging a glance, they both started to creep upwards, hugging the wall, Sam in the lead.

Once at the top, they went in different directions again to clear the rest of the rooms. “Clear,” Sam called.

“All clear,” Callen called back. “Get in here Sam.”

Sam soon joined his partner in the smallest bedroom, which had been converted to an office. “Bingo!” Sam exclaimed softly when he registered the computer on the desk.

Callen was already seated and had turned the computer on. “Here,” Sam handed over a flash drive to him and Callen plugged it in.

“Can you access it Eric?” he asked. 

Sam went over to the filing cabinet in the corner to search it while Eric reported back that the computer had the same encryption as the one they’d found at the facility full of drugged people.

“Sorry guys, you’ll need to bring it back here for me to crack it,” he said.

“We’ve got some files here as well,” Sam reported.

Callen turned to look at his partner. “I’ll find something to bag it all up in,” he said. 

“Gentlemen,” Hetty’s voice came over their earwigs.

“What is it Hetty?” Callen asked.

“I have arranged a private flight for you,” she told them. “As soon as you are done searching, head back to the airport and it’s at the charter terminal waiting for you. I want that evidence back here as soon as possible, so we can get to work on finally solving this case.”

Callen and Sam exchanged a glance, knowing that Granger was pressing for results or their withdrawal from the case, preferring to let the FBI hand the rest of the investigation.

“We’ll be on our way as soon as we can Hetty,” Callen told her. “The rest of the house is clean, it’s just the files and the computer in this office.”

“Very well then, let me know when you are back at the airport,” Hetty told them.

Callen headed for the door. “I saw some boxes in the garage,” he said.

Sam just nodded, continuing to pull file folders from the drawers of the filing cabinet and stack them on the floor. There was a lot to go through here, so they would take everything and sort it all out once they were back in Los Angeles.

*

A couple of hours later and they were back at Ops, unloading the boxes of files with the help of Kensi and Deeks. Eric had already come and collected the computer hard drive and gone back to start work on decrypting it.

“Just how boxes did you bring anyway?” Deeks complained, as Sam put a second one on top of the first he was already holding.

“More than enough to keep you out of mischief Deeks,” Callen told him. 

“Are you sure about that?” Kensi asked with a smirk at her glowering partner, although she did hold the door open for him.

Sam snorted. “She has a point.”

Callen just rolled his eyes as he passed a couple more boxes to his partner to stack in Kensi’s arms. To his surprise, the door was held open for her by Granger.

“I can carry a couple,” the Assistant Director told Sam, as Kensi headed down the tunnel.

Sam raised his eyebrows, but they accepted the offer. Of course, once Callen had his two boxes, Sam had to show off by taking all of the last three himself.

“Mr Hanna, allow me,” Hetty exclaimed, as she held the door open.

Sam grunted. “I got it,” he said. “If I try and hand one off now, I’ll just drop the whole lot.”

“Very well Mr Hanna, we are convening in the gym,” she told them. “We’ve got several tables set up there, so that you have enough room to work while you sort everything out.”

*

Several hours later, there was paper spread everywhere. They had wheeled in one of the large plasma screens and wired up a laptop to it, to help them, as well as setting up a whiteboard to write ideas up. But so far, although they had sorted the files into broad categories, they hadn’t found anything.

Eric had reported that the computer hard drive was a bust; it just contained the same data they had already found on the hard drive at the facility.

“No secret files or partitions or anything,” he reported, with a gesture of frustration. “Sorry!”

Hetty patted his arm. “Not your fault my dear. Now pick a table and start sorting.”

Eric gave a wild-eyed look around the room, but everyone, including both Granger and Hetty was going through a table of files. Callen, though, had spread paper around himself on the floor, sitting cross-legged and apparently oblivious to the rest of the room.

At one point, Granger disappeared, but came back with a stack of pizza boxes and a bag of sodas. “Alright, everyone take a break,” he said. “You’ll never find anything otherwise.”

“I never knew you could be so generous,” Hetty remarked, as they gathered around a table that had been cleared of files.

Sam noticed his partner still sitting on the floor, apparently absorbed in whatever he was doing. “Yo partner!” he called, but there was no response. “G!” he called a little more insistently.

“I’ll get him,” Kensi offered, standing from her place at the table.

Hetty raised a hand. “Leave him,” she said thoughtfully. “He’s onto something.”

“Why do you say that?” Deeks asked.

“Because the last time he was this focused he solved a code the best analysts at Langley hadn’t been able to break in three months,” Hetty told them.

There was silence for a few moments at that revelation before Nell burst out, “He broke the Troika code?”

“Miss Jones?” Hetty gave her a stern look.

Nell blushed as red as her hair. “I read a paper on it when I was doing my training in Washington,” she explained. “It was brilliant.”

Hetty gave her a fond smile. “It was rather, wasn’t it?”

“Did you write it Hetty?” Kensi asked.

She shook her head, amused. “That was all Mr Callen.”

Sam leaned back in his chair. “G wrote a paper on code breaking?” he asked surprised.

“Mr Callen may not have had the same educational opportunities as the rest of you, but he has a great deal of knowledge.”

Sam raised his hand. “I know that Hetty, I would never imply G is stupid. I just don’t see him having the patience to sit and write some scholarly paper is all.”

“He wouldn’t normally,” Hetty admitted. “But no one else could do what he did and it needed to be written up. I managed to persuade him in the end, but he insisted that he wasn’t named as author.”

Nell nodded agreement at that. “I had no idea who’d written it,” she said. “I thought it must have come from an asset in Russia.”

“In a way it did,” Hetty said. “Except it was our field asset who solved it, while still working an undercover op. However, any further details remain classified.”

“I’ve got something,” Callen’s exclamation got their attention and they turned to see him stand up and brandish several sheets of paper. He took them all in with a frown, seeing they were seated to one side eating.

“What do you have Agent Callen?” Granger asked.

Callen came over to them. “Is that pizza?” They all heard a loud rumble from his stomach and everyone laughed.

“I saved you some pepperoni,” Sam told him with an indulgent grin, handing over the box.

“What did you find Mr Callen?” Hetty asked, as he sat down and opened the box.

Callen looked up, holding the pile of paper out to Nell. “Can you scan these in?” he asked. 

Nell had been using a hand scanner for any documents they wanted added to the digital archive they were building. “Of course,” she agreed, hopping up from her seat.

“And we need this website Eric,” Callen added, handing over a separate slip of paper to the tech operator.

Eric rubbed his hands clean quickly before accepting it. “On it.” He followed Nell over to the laptop they had set up.

Callen ignored them in favor of his food, grabbing a soda to take a long drink as he finished his first slice of pizza. 

“So what did you find?” Deeks asked, as they watched Callen demolish more pizza.

He looked up in surprise, then rolled his eyes when he noticed he had an audience. “Their records,” he said simply and reached for more pizza.

The others exclaimed at that and Kensi and Deeks made a beeline for the plasma, followed more slowly by Hetty and Granger. Callen looked at his partner, who just stared back with raised eyebrows.

“It’s not a big deal Sam,” Callen complained.

“Oh I know you think that G,” Sam agreed. 

Callen just shook his head, ignoring him and grabbing the last slice of pizza. 

“You’ll give yourself indigestion if you’re not careful,” Sam told him.

“Still not my mother,” Callen retorted with another eye roll.

Sam shook his head. “No, just the guy who loves you,” he said, softly enough that the others wouldn’t hear, although they were all several feet away, discussing whatever Nell and Eric had on the screen.

Callen just gave him a look at that but didn’t say anything, cramming the last of his pizza in his mouth and grabbing his can of drink. He shoved his chair back with a noisy screech that made Sam wince and went to join the rest of the team.

“Did you get it yet?” he addressed the question to Nell, who looked up at him with bright eyes.

“We did,” she agreed happily. “It’s a simple Vigenère cipher and we’re getting lots of personnel details.”

Callen nodded at that, stepping closer to the screen, the others automatically giving way to him. “Looks like just the hired help,” he said thoughtfully, as he scanned down the list of people. “Are you sure there was nothing else on that hard drive Eric?”

The tech operator rolled his eyes at the question. “I’m sure Callen,” he said.

“Then we’re still missing something,” Callen murmured.

“Maybe we just haven’t found it yet?” Kensi suggested.

Sam shook his head. “We’ve been through everything,” he told her. 

“Then maybe we need to check again,” Deeks clearly didn’t want to make the suggestion, he looked less than happy as he gazed at all the piles of paper.

“Or maybe just Callen needs to check again?” Nell suggested.

That got all eyes on her and she flushed a little, but held her ground. “He found all this,” she gestured at the screen that was now filled with data. “So maybe he can see something in the rest of the documents that the rest of us are missing?”

“That’s a very good suggestion Miss Jones,” Hetty agreed with a smile for the intelligence analyst.

Callen blew out a breath as he looked at the tables. “Just as well I don’t sleep isn’t it?” he said rhetorically and headed for the first table. “The rest of you may as well call it a night.”

“What about if you find something?” Kensi protested.

“Whatever he might find can wait till morning,” Granger spoke up for the first time. “We can hand all this data over to the FBI, so they can get started on tracking down the people here.”

“That’s if there’s anyone left to find,” Sam interjected with a scowl.

None of them looked happy at that, but they all knew he was right.

“I believe we would all benefit from a period of rest,” Hetty spoke into the silence that fell in the wake of Sam’s comment. “Including you Mr Callen,” she said with a raised hand when he went to speak. “I’m not saying you have to sleep, but you do need to get away from here for a few hours, you haven’t had a break since before you went to Sacramento.”

Callen scowled at that, but he recognized Hetty’s implacable expression, the operations manager wasn’t going to be moved on this point.

“Come on G, you can stay on my couch tonight,” Sam suggested. He would prefer his partner do no such thing, but their relationship was still a secret from Granger as far as they knew and they preferred to keep it that way.

“Alright,” Callen agreed with a defeated sigh and they all headed for the door.

“I will ensure the gym remains locked overnight,” Hetty told them as they trailed into the bullpen to get their bags. “I don’t want any of you back here before 10.00 hours tomorrow.”

“Ten o’clock?” Callen protested.

Sam shook his head. “Check your watch partner, it’s nearly 2am.”

Callen just sighed and reached for his bag. “Let’s go then.”

The rest of the team were already on their way out the door, followed by Granger. Hetty would be the last one out as always. Sam took advantage of the moment, to put his arm around his partner’s shoulders.

“I’ve got just the thing to help you relax,” he murmured in Callen’s ear, enjoying the slight shiver that elicited.

Callen didn’t reply, but he did speed up as they headed down the tunnel and Sam chuckled as he matched his partner’s pace.

*

Sam woke up to an empty bed and frowned, looking at the clock. It was nearly 7am, so his partner had had some sleep, though not as much as Sam had hoped, when he’d given Callen a back massage and then given him a long, slow fucking a few hours before.

With a sigh, he rolled out of bed and pulled on running clothes. He was up, so he might as well get started on the day. They could always go out for breakfast when he got back.

“Hey G,” Sam found his partner in the lounge, TV tuned to the History Channel, with the volume turned down low.

Callen himself was slouched down, staring at the screen but probably not really seeing anything if the distant look in his eyes meant anything.

“Sam,” Callen looked up briefly, then away again.

Sam frowned. “You did sleep didn’t you?” he asked, suddenly concerned.

Callen gave him a moody look. “I got a couple of hours.”

Sam came to sit next to him. “So what’s going on in that brain of yours today?” he asked.

Callen just shook his head. “I’ll come with you,” he said, pushing to his feet and heading to the bedroom.

Sam stared after his retreating back. Callen rarely came running with Sam, preferring to use a treadmill in the gym to pounding the pavements. Deciding he wasn’t going to get any answers soon, Sam went to wait for his partner by the front door, stretching his legs to warm up.

It didn’t take long for Callen to reappear in running clothes and he quickly stretched as well before following Sam out the door and down the road. Sam kept the pace easy to start with, building up gradually as they covered the miles, leading them in a familiar loop around his neighborhood and back to the house. 

Once inside, Callen followed Sam into the shower, which was deliberately big enough for both of them to fit easily. He pressed up against Sam as the hot water flowed over them, kissing aggressively in a way that he rarely did, preferring to let Sam take the lead. Then he dropped to his knees and sucked in Sam’s half-hard cock with a deep groan, swallowing the whole thing.

Sam moaned in appreciation, looking down at his partner on his knees for him. He rested one hand on Callen’s wet hair, while the other pressed against the slick tile behind him. Callen looked up at him through his eyelashes, then hummed around his mouthful, reaching up to tease Sam’s balls at the same time.

Sam moaned again, head dropping back against the tile as he was skillfully blown by his partner’s talented mouth. It wasn’t long until he was giving it up, come swallowed by Callen who made eager noises the whole time.

As Sam wrenched open heavy eyes, Callen flowed to his feet easily and took Sam’s mouth in another aggressive kiss. He pressed his hard cock into Sam’s hip and Sam fumbled to get a grip on him. Callen moaned into Sam’s mouth, hips jerking and Sam just had to stand there and let his partner do all the work, while Sam kept a tight grip on his cock. 

It didn’t take long before Callen gave a loud cry and Sam’s hand was coated in spunk, which was quickly washed away by the water.

“Come on,” Callen said breathlessly, pushing himself upright.

Sam blinked at him, still feeling like he’d not recovered from his own orgasm, while his partner was still full of energy.

“Let’s rinse off and go get breakfast,” Callen told him impatiently. “I’m starving.”

Sam shook his head, but managed to stand upright and reach for the shower gel. Callen snatched from his hand with a quick grin and a wink. “I’ve got you old man,” he teased.

Sam reached out and goosed him, just to see his partner jump and yelp. “Who you calling old?” he demanded.

Callen just laughed and Sam couldn’t help smiling, pleased to see whatever mood his partner had been in earlier was now gone. 

They quickly got clean and dried off, before dressing and heading for Sam’s Challenger. “Patrick’s,” Callen said as he slid into the passenger seat. It wasn’t a question.

“Sure,” Sam agreed, not in the mood to argue. After the run and the antics in the shower, he could eat something a little unhealthy for once. Besides, he didn’t want to do anything to spoil his partner’s good mood.

*

When they arrived in Ops, it wasn’t a surprise to see Hetty at her desk already, even though it was before 10am. They crossed to say good morning.

“I thought I told you not to come in before 10am gentlemen.”

“Good morning to you too Hetty,” Callen said sarcastically.

She shook her head. “It is morning, it’s goodness remains debatable Mr Callen.”

“So why are you here before 10am?” Sam asked. “You left as late as us last night.”

“Well, unfortunately neither Sec Nav nor the Director care about how late I got to bed,” Hetty told him.

Sam grimaced at that. “I guess they’re pressing for answers?”

“Oh you could say that Mr Hanna. And shortly we will have the pleasure of the Assistant Director’s company as well, to press for answers in person.”

“Just as well we got in early then,” Callen pointed out. “I’ll be in the gym.” He turned to leave.

“Mr Callen,” Hetty called and he turned back. “Remember there might not be anything to find.”

He nodded, then headed towards the gym. “Keep an eye on him Mr Hanna,” Hetty said.

“I always do.”

*

Several hours later, Callen was tense and frustrated. “Nothing!” he complained, pushing backwards in his chair.

Sam had brought his laptop into the gym and was sat beside him, working on reports. He turned to his partner, who was rubbing the back of his neck and frowning. 

“Why don’t you take a break?” he suggested.

Callen gestured at the tables of files he still had to go through. Sam shook his head and stood up. “You can stop for a few minutes G,” he said softly and moved behind his partner, putting his hands on Callen’s shoulders.

“What are you doing?” Callen asked.

Sam snorted. “I must be losing my touch if you need to ask that.”

Callen squirmed a little in his seat, but Sam held on firmly and started to rub. “Try to relax G.”

Callen blew out a loud sigh, but tipped his head forward in a gesture of surrender. Sam didn’t say anything, just kept up the steady pressure of his hands, working at the knots in Callen’s neck, shoulders and upper back.

A little while later, the sound of footsteps approaching caught Sam’s attention. He guessed it was Granger, so slowed and then stopped his movements, knowing his partner wouldn’t want the Assistant Director to catch him in a vulnerable moment.

Sure enough, as Sam retook his seat, Granger walked into the gym. “Gentlemen,” he nodded. “Any progress Agent Callen?”

Callen scowled and Sam could see him tense up again. “No more than the last three times you asked,” he said.

“Perhaps there’s nothing to find,” Granger suggested.

Callen rolled his eyes, as he still had his back to the Assistant Director. “Perhaps there isn’t,” he agreed. “But I still have to look.”

“And what makes you think you’ll succeed where your colleagues didn’t?”

“I know you were here for the conversation last night,” Callen was nowhere near polite and still hadn’t turned to face the other man. “And despite what the others thought, I heard everything that was said.”

Granger didn’t say anything else and after a moment, he turned and walked away again. Callen sighed and slumped back in his chair as soon as he was out of sight and Sam sighed too.

“Do you think there is something to find?” he asked.

“What you doubt me too?” Callen asked.

Sam shook his head. “That wasn’t what I said G and you know it. I’m asking your opinion on whether there’s anything else hidden in these files.”

“I don’t know Sam,” Callen replied. “I still think there’s something hidden on a computer somewhere, despite what Eric said.”

Sam hummed in thought. “Not sure where we would look though and I know you trust Eric to have found anything on all the devices he’s searched.”

“So what are we missing?” Callen asked.

“I wish I knew G,” Sam told him. “I wish I knew.”

Callen frowned, realization of what had been bugging him suddenly dawning. “The tablet,” he said.

“What?”

“The tablet,” Callen repeated. He pushed to his feet and hurried from the gym, pulling out his cell phone as he went.

Sam followed behind as his partner called Eric to the gadget room.

“What is it Callen?” Eric asked as he met them there.

Callen gestured towards the tablet they had recovered from the medical facility. “Did you do a full check of this?”

Eric frowned and started to speak, then paused and frowned some more before finally saying, “No,” really slowly.

Callen waited for him to continue. “I cracked the laptop first and when I looked at the tablet afterwards, it seemed to be the same, so I didn’t go any further.” As he spoke, Eric connected the tablet to the computer in the corner and fired it up.

Callen and Sam watched as Eric typed quickly, then studied something, before typing some more. “Got it!” he said.

Callen and Sam moved closer to see what Eric had on the screen. “What is it Eric?” Callen asked.

“One of the so-called recovery partitions is actually several gig of data,” Eric said. He opened up a document on the screen. “It looks like the same code as you found before Callen.”

Hetty appeared next to them. “Progress gentlemen?”

Eric startled as he looked up, but Callen and Sam kept studying the screen. “Can you decode it Eric?”

“Yeah, let me just go to the website from before, hopefully they used the same key.”

The first thing that appeared on the screen was a photo and some biographical data. “Fuck!” Callen swore as soon as he saw the picture, then turned and stalked away.

“G?” Sam called after his partner. As he did so, he heard Hetty mutter, “Bugger.” He turned around to their boss.

“What is it?” he asked. “Who is this?”

Hetty shook her head. “Mr Callen and I will deal with this Mr Hanna,” was all she said, before hurrying off in the same direction Callen had gone.

Sam muttered under his breath, then turned to Eric. “Let’s get up to Ops and we can start sorting this information and trying to work out what’s going on.”

“Of course,” Eric nodded and they both headed for the stairs.

“Gentlemen,” Granger’s voice caught them at the foot of the stairs.

Sam turned, giving Eric a head jerk so that he’d carry on, an invitation the tech operator looked happy to accept. “Granger,” Sam nodded to the Assistant Director.

“What’s going on?”

“New intel on the case,” Sam told him. “We’re just going up to Ops to start the analysis.”

“Where’s your partner?” 

Sam bit back a sigh. “We don’t have time for this.”

“Humor me Agent Hanna.”

“He’s following up a lead with Hetty,” Sam told him reluctantly, not feeling able to lie.

Granger raised his eyebrows at that, as much emotion as he ever showed. “With Henrietta?”

“That’s what I said,” Sam told him impatiently and started up the stairs, Granger following behind.

In Ops, Eric already had the big screen full of information. “This is what we have so far,” he started as soon as Sam and Granger were in the door. “Charles Neve, CEO of Neve Pharma, multi-billion dollar company.”

Nell chimed in. “On first appearance, they look legit. Founded by Neve in 2005 and quickly grew to hold a large share of the market, lots of research into all types of new drugs, good reports from the FDA, no indication they’re into anything shady.”

“Alright,” Granger said. “Get digging you two, find out everything you can on this guy and his company and what sort of involvement he might have in our zombie drug. What other information was on the tablet?”

Nell went back to her work station and started typing frantically, while Eric took up the narration again. “There are a number of other people listed, all looking like the typical board members of a large company such as Neve Pharma. Again, initial searches show nothing suspicious about any of them.”

Granger nodded. “Carry on then,” he said, before turning to Sam. “That leaves us no closer to knowing what Hetty and Callen’s connection might be to this guy.”

“I know,” Sam agreed. “Are we going to try and track them?”

Granger’s smile was typically humorless. “Do you really think we’d have any luck with those two?”

“I had to ask,” Sam said.

“You leave tracking them down to me, Agent Hanna,” Granger told him. “I want you to work with Beale and Jones on the intel from this tablet. What about Blye and Deeks?”

“Still helping the FBI with interrogations on the low level staff they rounded up.”

Granger nodded. “Alright, they might as well carry on with that for now, though I doubt we’ll get anything useful out of anyone. Keep me updated.”

He was gone out of Ops before Sam could say anything, so he turned back to Nell and Eric with a sigh.

*

Callen had almost reached his car when his cellphone rang. He dug it out of his pocket, thinking it was going to be either Granger or Sam trying to get him to come back to Ops. He knew it wasn’t Hetty, because she was behind him and he didn’t have much time to get away before she caught up to him.

To his surprise, it was a video call from an unknown number. He frowned down at the phone for a second, finger hovering over the button to reject the call, but decided he’d better accept it. As soon as the video appeared, he realized he’d made the right decision. Kensi was being held at knife point by a tall white guy that he recognized and she looked extremely angry.

“Agent Callen,” the man’s voice was deep and smooth. “I see you know who I am.”

“I know,” he ground out. “What are you doing Neve?”

He got a sneered smile in return. “Isn’t it obvious Agent Callen? I’m finally exacting my revenge. I admit, it’s taken a little longer than I expected, but they do say revenge is a dish best served cold.”

“What do you want?” Callen demanded. He kept glancing between Neve and Kensi, trying to see if she could give him any clues as to her whereabouts or any plans she might have.

Neve spoke again, drawing his attention back to him. “I’m sending you an address. I expect you to be there within the hour. Once you get here, I will let your pretty Agent here go.”

Callen wanted to argue, protest, something, but he was aware of the need to get away before Hetty reached him. He could only assume she hadn’t yet because she’d stopped by the armory for supplies.

“I’ll be there,” he said.

Neve gave him a wide, insincere smile. “We look forward to seeing you.” The call ended before Callen could do or say any more. He hurried towards his car, checking the address Neve had sent him, cursing when he heard Hetty’s voice behind him.

“Mr Callen!”

“I don’t have time Hetty,” he called back, not stopping his rush to his car.

“Then make time, Mr Callen.”

He stopped and turned back. “Hetty, I have less than an hour to get to Neve, he has Kensi.”

She hadn’t been expecting that. “Then you need back up.”

He shook his head. “I have to go alone,” he insisted. “This is my problem, it’s me he wants.”

“Not just your problem Mr Callen.”

“This situation is,” he said. “Please let me go.”

She studied his face. “Very well Mr Callen, but you can’t stop whatever measures I take to protect you both.”

“Thank you,” he said, not bothering to question whatever she might be planning. He turned back to his car and connected his phone so that he could use the GPS to guide him to Neve’s address. When he looked back up again as he got moving, Hetty had disappeared.

*

Callen had reached his destination with time to spare; for once the L.A. traffic had co-operated, so he pulled over in a convenient spot to see what he could find out about the address before he approached.

Having heard several alerts on his phone while he was driving, he wasn’t surprised to find that Eric had uploaded a number of files of information for him to read through about the location and the security around it. There was also a text from Sam, which was typically succinct.

_“On way with Deeks, REACT & SWAT. Don’t do anything stupid.”_

Callen snorted at that. It was typical Sam-speak for be careful and watch your back. He would certainly do his best, but he wouldn’t do anything that would endanger Kensi either, she was the more important one in this.

He then went through the files from Eric, not surprised to find that the property only had closed circuit surveillance, which Eric couldn’t hack. There was an estimate of at least ten men on the property, inside and out, as additional security, along with guard dogs. None of them mattered though, as Callen had an invitation to enter. Neve was the only one he needed to be concerned about.

Just as he was about to start the car again, another text came through, this one from Eric. “Check your glove box,” was all it said.

He did so and found a small box inside that he recognized. Opening it, Callen found an earwig and button cam inside. He smiled to himself. He didn’t know when Hetty had put the box there, but could only be grateful for her seeming omniscience. Callen took a minute to slip both items in place, then tapped the earwig to activate it.

“We read you Callen,” Eric’s voice immediately sounded in his ear.

“What’s Sam’s ETA?” he asked, as he pulled back onto the road.

“They’re holding position ten minutes away,” Nell replied. “They wanted to make sure they weren’t close enough to arouse suspicion, there’s not a lot of places to hide that many people nearby.”

Callen nodded even though they couldn’t see, that made sense. “I’m two minutes out,” he said. “You should be prepared to lose me though once I get inside. We don’t know what sort of counter measures Neve will have running or how thoroughly I’ll be searched.”

“If that happens Mr Callen, we will give you thirty minutes to re-establish contact and then Mr Hanna is authorized to breach, although he has said a stealthy approach will be best if at all possible.”

“Be prepared for him not to let Kensi go either,” Callen reminded them.

“We’re already expecting that,” Hetty’s voice was somber as she spoke and Callen knew she was remembering the past just like he was.

*

Callen was allowed through the guarded gate with a minimum of fuss and then followed a long, winding drive to a large white house. It was typical Hollywood mansion, all overblown and fake, pretending to be an English country house. He grimaced at the sight, but it fit with what he remembered of Neve.

When he pulled to a stop in front of a set of steps to the front door, two men in suits who were obviously just there as muscle waited for him. “Here we go,” he said softly, as he went to meet the men.

They were a silent escort as he was taken down several hallways and finally into a large well-lit room. Neve stood waiting, Kensi beside him. She looked angry, but otherwise uninjured, hands tied behind her back. Callen gave her a brief nod and received the same in return, before focussing his attention on Neve.

“Agent Callen, good to see you again,” he said, tone oily and dripping sarcasm.

Callen gave him a false smile. “Wish I could say the same Chuck.”

That earned him a glare from the other man. “Search him,” he gestured to one of the guards who’d escorted Callen.

Callen stood patiently, arms out to the side, as he was patted down thoroughly. His gun, knife and cellphone were all taken and piled on a small table. “I’ll want those back,” he said calmly.

Neve just sneered. “Take his earwig,” he told one of the guards.

The guard looked uncertain, so Callen quickly removed it and held it out. “If you damage that, my boss will send you a bill.”

“You mean the great Hetty Lange?” Neve asked with another sneer. He took the earwig, dropped it and crushed it with one heel.

Callen winced, knowing how that would have reverberated in the ears of the team if he hadn’t turned it off first. As it was, they would have seen what happened, thanks to the button cam, which Neve seemed oblivious to.

“Now let Kensi go,” Callen said to Neve, working to keep projecting a calmness he wasn’t really feeling.

He was unsurprised to get yet another sneer in response. The guy was worse than a third rate pantomime villain. “I don’t think so.” Neve pulled out a syringe and dragged Kensi to him.

“No!” Callen shouted the word, lunging forward towards them. But it was in vain, he watched the needle plunge into Kensi’s neck, even as he felt something that had to be a taser strike him in the back.

Callen fell forward, but managed to roll as he went down. He saw Kensi slump to the floor in a heap and tried to crawl towards her, but before he could get there, one of the guards was dragging him upright again. Callen struggled, but couldn’t get free, so he kicked out. The other guard grabbed his legs and then Neve was coming at him, another needle in hand.

Callen fought harder, but couldn’t get anywhere, between the effects of the taser and the two men holding him. This time he didn’t get the lucky escape he’d had at Neve’s facility, instead the needle sunk into his neck as he cried out and then blackness swamped him and he went limp in the men’s arms.

*

When Callen woke, he frowned as he wondered where he was. Regular beeping sounded like a hospital monitor but it didn’t seem right. He saw that he was in a hospital gown though and a needle was in the back of his hand. Looking up, he saw the familiar figure of his partner near to a window on the other side of the room.

“Sam.” His attempt to say his partner’s name came out pretty garbled, but it was clearly still enough to get the other man’s attention.

“G!” Sam sounded surprised and relieved as he turned and hurried over.

Callen cleared his throat before trying to speak again, but that just made him cough. “Take it easy G,” Sam counseled, reaching for a cup of ice chips.

Callen gratefully accepted the cold sliver, letting it melt slowly and slide down his throat, then looked to Sam who quickly spooned out a second one for him.

“Where are we?” His voice was hoarse, but at least this time he sounded intelligible.

Sam perched on the side of the bed and gave him another ice chip. “Druid Hills, Georgia, home of the CDC.”

Callen frowned at that, not able to make sense of things in his head. His muddled thinking suggested he’d been out of it for a while. “Don’t remember.”

“It’s alright G,” Sam said soothingly, taking his hand and rubbing his thumb across the back of it. “What’s the last thing you do remember?”

Callen thought about it. “The Cisneros case, Inman and his kill house and the Molina cartel.”

“That was a few months ago G.”

“Months?” Callen heard his heart monitor start to beep more insistently and forced himself to take calming breaths. Sam’s hand squeezed his firmly.

“You haven’t been unconscious that long G, I promise,” Sam told him. “It’s only been a few weeks.”

Callen clenched his jaw at that information. Weeks was still not good. “What the hell happened to me and why are we at the CDC?”

“You were given an unnamed experimental drug.”

Callen stared at his partner. “By whom?”

Sam sighed. “Do you remember Charles Neve?”

“Fuck!” Callen’s heart monitor started to beep more loudly again as he remembered the man Sam was talking about.

The door opened and a doctor came in. “Mr Callen, Mr Hanna, is everything alright in here?”

“Dr Carrow, it’s fine,” Sam said.

The doctor frowned at Sam’s assertion and came forward. “I think you should let Mr Callen rest some more,” he said firmly. “You can come back later.”

“No,” Callen protested at that.

“It’s alright G, I should go update Hetty with the good news anyway, so she can tell the rest of the team. I’ll be back in a little while.”

Callen pouted and not even Sam’s (sadly brief) kiss made him feel any better. Especially when the doctor stayed behind and started checking him over.

*

When Sam finished his phone call with Hetty, he went back to his partner’s room. The doctor had already left. Callen had his eyes closed, but as soon as Sam came into the room, he looked up.

“Hetty’s pleased to hear that you’re awake,” Sam told him.

Callen nodded. “When can I go home?”

“The doctor didn’t tell you?”

Callen snorted. “The doctor didn’t say anything, he has a lousy bedside manner.”

Sam couldn’t help smiling at that. He had noticed that the doctor’s communication style left a bit to be desired. “So are you ready to talk about Charles Neve?”

“Wow, way to change the subject partner,” Callen said with an eye roll.

Sam smirked as he settled in the chair next to his partner’s bed. “I know you prefer the direct approach G.”

“Well in this case, you could have hedged.”

Sam rolled his eyes back. “I note that you’re not answering the question.”

Callen gave a loud sigh at that. “Yeah,” he said reluctantly. “It’s not exactly my favorite subject.”

Sam took his hand and rubbed a thumb across the back of it. “Talk to me G.”

“What do you know?” Callen countered.

Sam shook his head. “Hetty just said it was someone from your past.”

“And not a good someone,” Callen agreed. “Remember the case with Allina Rostoff?”

Sam’s grip on his partner’s hand tightened at that. “Not like I can forget.”

“Yeah,” Callen winced. “Well, remember how I was a DEA loan out to the CIA for that one? That was in exchange for when the DEA had borrowed me from the CIA for an op.”

Sam winced. The way his partner had been passed around the various federal agencies for undercover missions had always bothered him, even though Callen seemed blasé about the whole thing. Some of the agencies had treated him more like a useful commodity, than a person, thanks to his language and undercover skills.

“And?” Sam prompted, when Callen stopped, appearing lost in memories.

“Yeah, anyway, they wanted me to get into a drugs gang for them. My in was a girl who was on the fringes. She was Neve’s much younger sister.”

Sam could guess exactly how well that had gone, if Neve’s attitude to his partner was anything to go by. Callen caught his expression and nodded. “At the end of the op, there were a dozen arrests, nearly as many dead, including Neve’s sister.”

Callen paused again and his calculating expression suggested he was trying to work out how much he could get away with telling. “You?” Sam asked.

“That’s how I got this,” Callen indicated a knife scar on his abdomen that he’d never talked about before. “I didn’t go back to the CIA or the DEA after that one, just drifted around Europe for a few months.”

“What brought you back?”

“Hetty of course,” Callen said with a faint smirk. “She tracked me down in Spain, persuaded me to come back to L.A. with her and after another few months, I accepted a large payout from the DEA and a job in Russia on loan to the CIA for the case involving Stanhope and the rest.”

Sam nodded at that. They sat quietly for a few minutes, before Callen spoke up again.

“So what about this case?” he asked. “Tell me how I ended up here.”

Sam sighed, but it was a fair question, so he explained everything about how they’d gotten involved in the search for four missing sailors, found the medical facility, the attack on Callen, his trip to Sacramento and how he’d solved the code that led them to the staff from the facility.

“Then we were stuck at Ops, trying to figure out the rest of it, while Kensi and Deeks went out to help the FBI question the staff we’d located?” Callen asked.

“That’s right.”

“So how did we find Neve?”

“More like he found us,” Sam said. “Eric had just cracked the tablet, which gave us his identity, when he called you up and told you he had Kensi.”

“Cracking the tablet alerted him then,” Callen said. It wasn’t a question, but Sam answered anyway.

“Hetty was going to go with you, but you persuaded her you had to go it alone. He gave you his address and you drove in there all Lone Wolf McQuade.”

Callen snorted at that. “Is Kensi okay?” was all he said though.

“He used a neuromuscular block on her, but once that wore off she was fine.”

“Which brings us to me,” Callen said. “How did you get me out of there and what about Neve?”

Sam’s grip on his partner’s hand tightened as he remembered how they’d found him. “We infiltrated the guard shack at the gate first. That allowed Eric to get eyes into the house and confirm the location of all the guards. We were able to co-ordinate taking them all out at once. And Neve’s arrogance made him over-confident. He only had two guards inside. Once he’d incapacitated both you and Kensi, he sent them off on a coffee break.”

Callen snorted at that. “He always was a short-sighted fool. Is he still alive?”

Sam sighed. “Yeah, because he’s also a coward or maybe his arrogance means he thinks he’s going to skate on this or something. Because while Deeks went with one team to rescue Kensi, I took the rest to find you and Neve. When we did locate you, he didn’t offer any resistance at all, just let us cuff him and take him away.”

Callen squeezed Sam’s fingers. “Pity,” he said lightly. “Still, I would have been disappointed to have missed you taking out a can of whoop ass on the guy.”

Sam laughed at that. “The place was wired six ways from Sunday, so you could have gotten the video playback from Eric if it had happened.”

“So tell me about what happened to me,” Callen asked softly.

Sam didn’t want to but his partner deserved to know. “He had you in his basement lab of all things.”

“What a cliché!”

“Yeah, he had you restrained on this table and was in the process of cutting off your clothes when we found you.”

Callen shuddered at that and Sam couldn’t help leaning forward to put his arms around him where he still lay in the hospital bed. It hadn’t been pleasant and he really wished that Neve had given him a reason to at least hit the bastard, if not shoot him.

“What did he give me?” Callen asked, when Sam finally let him go.

“Something experimental he cooked up that doesn’t have a name, from what we can tell. It had the same effects as the blocker he gave Kensi, but also a few other things added to it. I’m sure someone would be happy to explain it if you really want to know.”

Callen shook his head. “Just tell me the effects and when I’ll be able to get back to work.”

“One of the effects was on your lungs and heart, your breathing was seriously compromised, as well as your immune system. You spent your first week here in an isolation room.’

Callen looked sick at that, pale and shaky and Sam stopped, not enjoying reliving the memories either. He had honestly thought he was going to lose his partner that whole first week.

“The whole team stayed here for that week,” Sam said when he felt able to carry on. “Granger tried to object, so Hetty tore several strips off him and Vance backed her the whole way.”

Callen smiled weakly. “Sorry I missed that.”

“Yeah, I don’t think there’s surveillance footage of that scene unfortunately,” Sam managed to joke. “Anyway, the team here have been seriously amazing. They’ve refused to give up and tried everything they could come up with and a few things I think they made up and it paid off. They kept you in a medically induced coma for another ten days though, to make sure your body could recover.”

Callen nodded. “Guess that explains why I feel so weak.”

“Yeah, you won’t be shaking this one off and going back to work in a couple of days G.,” Sam told him. “It’ll be a few more weeks at least. They said that depending on how you recovered, there was a chance we can take you back to Los Angeles in another week, but you’ll still be in hospital there until they’re happy it’s safe for you.”

“And after that, a few more weeks of physical therapy,” Callen added, because Sam knew he was familiar with this dance, after being shot five times and all the other injuries he’d had in the past.

“’Fraid so G,” he confirmed. 

“You’re staying though right?” Callen asked anxiously and Sam leaned over to kiss him.

“Of course I’m staying,” he affirmed. “Hetty made sure Granger knew that I’d be with you all the way until you’re back in L.A. Although she termed it as someone needing to make sure you followed the doctor’s rules, rather than anything else. Vance backed her on that, too, mentioning how you came back to work a month early after the shooting.”

“Sounds like I owe Hetty big time, Vance too,” Callen said with a smile.

Sam smiled as well, watching as his partner struggled to keep his eyes open. “Yeah, we do,” he agreed. “Now go to sleep G, I’ve got your back.”

Callen smiled at Sam’s use of “We,” but didn’t say anything else and soon enough, Sam could tell he was sound asleep. He breathed out in relief, glad to see his partner’s mental faculties were unaffected by what he’d been through. The physical side wouldn’t be easy, because Callen was hard to keep down, but they’d get there, he was sure of it.


End file.
